The Seahawks will be facing the Giants this coming week, making for a matchup between the two most-surprising good teams in the NFL this year.
How Seattle started the season 4-3 and is currently leading the NFC West is a complicated story with a lot of moving parts. That said, at the top of the list one has to mention their quarterback play – which accounts for the most shocking progression from any pro since Josh Allen went from being a bottom-end starter to a top-two superstar overnight.
At this point, Geno Smith should no longer have to convince anyone that he’s arrived. His numbers make the case themselves – he leads the league in completion percentage, ranks fourth in QBR and second in PFF grades. If you needed another sign of his ascendance, Smith is the lead story on today’s Football Morning in America column by Peter King.
Smith spoke at length about his time in the desert between starting for the Jets in 2013-2014 and his rise this year in Seattle. He credited coach Pete Carroll with the team’s success this season.
“Our success so far starts with the trust and belief of our head coach. Not many coaches would start two rookies on the offensive line, a rookie running back, two rookie cornerbacks. Not many coaches would be comfortable starting a quarterback who hasn’t played in many years. But Pete does it because he knows what he’s looking at. He’s played young guys before, lots of times. He’s taken chances on players, lots of time. He knows how to coach ball. You can see that this year.”
Carroll was roundly villified for trading Russell Wilson (we are no exception) to the Broncos, but after nearly half a season it’s starting to look like the sharpest move that was made in the NFL this offseason. Not only has Wilson’s game crashed and burned somewhere in the Rocky Mountains, but Smith is far outplaying the guy he spent the last three years backing up.
Smith’s rise has coincided with an incredible performance by a rookie class that may turn out to be even better than the Saints’ 2017 class and Seahawks’ 2012 class, considered the gold standard in this era.
Perhaps the most surprising twist of all is that Carroll has abandoned his greatest weakness: a conservative, run-first philosophy on offense that kept a low ceiling on his teams during the Wilson era. The Seahawks have one of the most pass-first attacks in the league this year and it’s a big factor in Geno’s success as well as the quality returns in the run game.
Heading into Week 8, the whole picture appears to be coming together. Seattle’s defense had a brutal start to the season but they’ve made a dramatic turnaround over the last three weeks. The sky is now the limit for this team.
A lot can happen in the second half of the season, but right now it looks like Carroll is going to have this job as long as he wants it.
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